Dew on the Thorn seeks to recreate the life of Texas Mexicans as Anglo culture was gradually encroaching upon them. Gonzalez provides us with a richly detailed portrait of the ranch life of the Olivares clan of south Texas, focusing on the cultural traditions of Texas Mexicans at a time when the divisions of class and race were pressing on the established way of life.

Dew on the Thorn is Gonzalez's first novel. It is available thanks to the historical editing by scholar Jose Limon, who was able to piece the work together from various fragments that were dispersed in the Gonzalez-Mireles archive at the Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. Included in this edition is a brief autobiography written by Jovita Gonzalez along with Limon's introduction and notes.

Limon has taken great care to document his re-construction of the narrative and to provide ample socio-cultural background and bibliography in this clear example of literary archeology.